Dawning Skye

Peggy snapped from her daze; “What the Bloody Hell! Get out!”

Klaus looked down at the floor; “But you screamed-”

“OUT!” both Skye and Peggy bellowed at the tops of their lungs.

Without another word, Klaus grabbed Ronnie’s shoulder, and dragged the dumbfounded virgin out of the room. As soon as Skye heard the door latch, she buried her head in her comforter and yelled. Zazzy quirked her head in confusion at all that had happened while Peggy complained about the two men’s lack of decorum.

“Why didn’t they knock?! Everyone knocks!” Peggy blustered.

“To be fair, ye did Scream,” Skye yelled through her blanket.

“Can ye blame me?! I thought Zazzy was gonna hurt ye! She’s the size of a dog, but weighs as much as a grown man! And she’s as solid as a rock. Actually..How are ye Not hurt?”

Skye poked her head up from her blanket, turned to Peggy, and replied; “Umm... About that..”

.....

As Skye finished explaining how her fight with Shasta had ended, Peggy burst out laughing while saying; “I would’ve paid good money to see her knocked on her arse!”

Peggy held her gut as Skye chided her; “Come on, Peggy; don’t be mean now. She’s not so bad once she brings her walls down a wee bit. Ye know what she is; ye understand how horrible of a situation she must’ve gone through just to Become a Bakeneko..”

Peggy cut her laughter short due to Skye’s words. Bakeneko were once ordinary house cats. There were many versions of how one came into existence, but all had two things things in common: A bond with a human for a significant amount of time, and the murder of said owner. Some stories said that the Bakeneko was transformed from the loss, while some stories said that they were the cause. Either way; Shasta clearly had a painful past. And as much as Peggy didn’t like her, she could sympathize.

After apologizing to her bairn, Peggy helped Skye ready herself for the day. She showered and dressed quickly, picking out another riding outfit to make the day go by easier. The black slacks she picked out had been lined with wool, then covered in a thin layer of silk. She used them during the winter only because of how warm they were.

The long sleeve, dark blue shirt made her hair and eye color stand out brilliantly. As Peggy handed Skye her boots, she realized just how grown up her bairn was now. A beautiful, intelligent woman that rose from commoner to princess, but remained the same good-hearted person she’d always been.

Where Peggy was quick to judge, Skye watched and listened. Her patience was seemingly infinite since her trip to the hot spring, and she hardly complained about anything now. Even things Peggy believed she had a right to. A surge of pride for her bairn triggered a smile to stretch across her face as she handed Skye her other boot.

Seeing the smile; Skye grinned back and simply said, “I love ye too, Peg..”

As Skye stood up, she called out to her baby dragon so she might bid her farewell for the day. She felt bad about leaving Zazzy with Peggy all the time, but there wasn’t anything she could do yet. Magnus told her to keep Zazzy safely in her wuarters until he could speak to his nobles about it.

The fact that Marco knew about her was both good and bad. Skye had convinced him to leave Zazzy be for now, but who knew what he might try to pull when she got older(and bigger). If Skye didn’t have some form of license or paper for Zazzy, she might be taken away some day..

Skye shook the thought from her head as Zazzy trotted up to her with something in her mouth. Asking for it kindly, Zazzy dropped a letter into her hand. Peggy instantly began to gripe about how unfair it was that Zazzy was so good for Skye, but a scaly terror for her half the time. It was the same as owning a puppy, but with MUCH bigger messes.

“Overgrown lizard.. She Never does what I ask! I spend the most time with her! Why does she not listen to me?!”

Skye flashed Peggy a sympathetic look as she spoke; “Well, if ye talk to her like an animal, she’ll behave like an animal. I talk to her like a person; maybe ye should try it.”

Skye had been ripping open the letter as she listened and talked to Peggy. It had her name on the from, but in handwriting she didn’t recognize. As she tried to read the letter, her confusion only worsened. The writing was so bad, Skye could only make out three words: Princess, ass, and arena.

The barely legible writing and few words she could understand gave the princess enough to go on. It was from Shasta, and she wanted Skye to meet her at the arena. She couldn’t tell what time, however, so she asked Peggy to take a look.

Once Skye told her who it was from, Peggy barked a laugh then said; “Of course her writing would look like cat scratches..”

“Peggy..”

“Sorry.. Ok, ok.. I think it says either two-thirty or three-thirty, but I can’t tell.”

“Damn it. I don’t know if I’ll make it there in time. If I skip breakfast I might-”

“No Way am I letting you skip a meal when yer literally off to use yer magic! That’s like packin’ no water when yer trekking across a desert! Ye best eat lunch too, if ye think yer gonna be sparing again.”

She wanted to argue, but the look on Peggy’s face told Skye that she wasn’t going to listen. Instead, she proposed a compromise. Peggy would run and make her a couple of sandwiches that she could take with her to eat as she rode. While Skye talked to the two idiots in the hallway about.. Everything.

Peggy agreed to it, even though she really wanted to see the spectacle. The two lads had been so preoccupied with Skye’s bared arse that they didn’t see Zazzy. If they were going to be there often, they needed to know to keep quiet about her to others.

As Peggy walked out of the room, she sent Ronnie and Klaus in with a devilish smirk. They looked nervous, which nearly made Peggy burst out in laughter again. As she walked away, she decided to mess with them a bit: “Whatever ye do, don’t look it in the eye; it’s a man-eater..”

As the two walked into Skye room, they kept their eyes on the floor. Skye stood leaning against the backside of the couch, with her arms folded across her chest. They all stood a moment in silence before Skye stated; “What ye saw, ye didn’t; Got It?!”

“Yes ma’am,” came their instant reply.

“Good. Ye know me husband, and ye know how angry he would get,” Skye added with cold hostility in her tone.

“yes ma’am,” came their instant reply again.

“Excellent! Now, on to the important part,” Skye stated as she pointed over to her bed.

The moment Klaus saw Zazzy, he stood up and withdrew his sword from it’s sheath. Ronnie’s jaw dropped in astonishment. It wasn’t a wyvern, but it clearly had wings tucked to it’s sides. Twisted stubs just under half a foot stuck out from the top of it’s head. And it’s scales were a deep, dark blue he would’ve mistaken for black had the blinds not been pulled back.

At the same time, but in different tones, both asked; “What is that?!”

Skye stared at them with obvious confusion on her face; “What do ye mean? She’s clearly a dragon..”

Ronnie smiled while Klaus seemed a bit panicked. Skye’s reaction and what was in front of them Clearly did not match up. Afraid he might attempt to hurt her, the princess explained the story of how the Fae gave Skye the egg as part of the land deal for Warrick Forest.

Klaus calmed down, but Ronnie started asking a million questions all at once. What she ate, where she slept, if she could fly yet, and even if she had magic. Klaus perked his ear up at that one, which made Skye a little curious. When she asked why he’d only cared about that answer, he responded with; “I was listening before, but that is more crucial.”

“If she turns on you some day, I’ll need to know what she’s capable of,” Klaus finished with an utterly serious expression.

All three looked over at Zazzy, who was busy scratching herself like a dog. As soon as she noticed her mother looking at her, she hopped off the bed, and approached her. Klaus tensed, but didn’t move. The glare Skye had shot his way was full of murder. A threat to not go near her dragon with ill intent.

Klaus nodded his acknowledgment of the princess’ will, and sheathed his sword. Zazzy happily waddled over to Skye and nuzzled her affectionately. Ronnie was close to hyperventilating due to his excitement. He stared at Zazzy like a child stared at sweet treats, making Skye a tad uneasy.

When he realized how he must’ve looked, Ronnie apologized then said; “Ima just so excited! It a Real Dragon! Do ye know how many people alive have Seen a Real DRAGON?! NONE!”

“Shhh! Keep yer voice down! Ye want to tell the whole castle Zazzy’s here?!” Skye nearly yelled herself.

“Oy! Sorry! So her name is Zazzy? Can I pet her Please?!” Ronnie asked with a gleam in his eye.

Skye smiled; “Aye, ye can, just talk to her normal and she’ll come to ye.”

Calling out to her, Zazzy perked her head up, and took the couple steps over to Ronnie. He looked ready to cry as Zazzy trilled in contentment at the attention she was getting. Klaus watched her scrupulously, but still had an urge to rub her belly. As if reading his mind, Skye offered him the opportunity.

Hesitantly, Klaus reached down after Ronnie scooted over, and began to rub Zazzy’s belly. He was surprised at how soft it was, and grinned softly at her little coos and trills of happiness. As he pulled his hand away, Klaus chuckled slightly; drawing Ronnie and Skye’s attention to him.

When they asked what was so funny, Klaus replied; “Nothing, just thought she has pretty eyes.”

Ronnie looked up at Klaus and chuckled as he recalled Peggy’s warning as well. The old servant was obviously getting back at them for walking in on the princess before. It was the main reason that Klaus had pulled his sword out as soon as he saw Zazzy.

As their laughter died out, the door opened; revealing Peggy with a platter of sandwiches. She smiled and nodded to Skye, then grinned the same grin she had in the hall. As she went around the couch to set the tray on the table, Peggy simply said; “Payback..”